Sunday, April 29, 2012

In addition to funding James Cameron’s Avatar II (here), the Communist China's Navy is asked to escort Titanic II on its maiden voyage to New York by a Capitalist billionaire. Is me or the world has gone mad?

Australian billionaire Clive Palmer plans to build a 21st-century
version of the Titanic with the help of a Chinese shipyard, with the
cruise ship’s maiden voyage from England to North America scheduled in
late 2016.

Palmer said he had invited the Chinese navy to escort Titanic II
on its maiden voyage to New York, according to an e- mailed statement.
The initial pact with China’s CSC Jinling Shipyard also includes plans
for a fleet of luxury liners.
Enlarge image Titanic II to Be Built

The Titanic sits under scaffolding in the spring of 1911 in this photo
made available to the media by the Library of Congress. Source: Library
of Congress (George Grantham Bain Collection) via Bloomberg
Audio Download: Dr. Ballard Describes Discovering Sunken Titanic
Enlarge image Billionaire Clive Palmer

The original Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg in the Atlantic on
April 15, 1912, costing the lives of 1,514 passengers and crew,
according to the statement. Mining magnate Palmer, 58, has a fortune of
A$5.05 billion ($5.3 billion) and was Australia’s fifth-richest person,
according to BRW magazine estimates in May.

“It will be every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic but of course
it will have state-of-the-art 21st century technology and the latest
navigation and safety systems,” Palmer said. “The Chinese ship building
industry with our assistance wants to be a major player in this market.”

The Titanic, commissioned by White Star Line, was the largest liner in
the world when built at just under 270 meters (886 feet) and 53 meters
high.

Palmer is developing coal and iron ore mines in Australia, including the
$8 billion China First coal project in Queensland state. Last year, he
dropped plans to sell shares in his company Resourcehouse Ltd. in Hong
Kong after commodities prices fell.

News
BEIJING : Thailand and China have agreed to jointly develop multiple rocket launchers with a guidance system as part of a move to strengthen military ties.
The two sides reached the agreement during a visit to China by the
Thai military top brass in what was described by Defence Minister
Sukumpol Suwanatat as a call by "the whole family" to China which is
"our close relative".
It is the first time in 15 years that a defence minister has led all
key military leaders ranging from the defence permanent secretary,
supreme commander and armed forces chiefs to meet Chinese senior
military officers, led by National Defence Minister Gen Liang Guanglie.

Under the new agreement, the Thai Defence Technology Institute will
work with China to develop new multiple rocket launchers called "DTI-1G
[Guided]" which will be more accurate and have a greater range than
existing systems, said ACM Sukumpol after the meeting.

Multiple rocket launchers are known for their devastating
capabilities and ability to deliver a large amount of ordinance
simultaneously, but are not recognised for precision because they are
not usually equipped with a guidance system.

In an earlier joint deal, Thailand and China developed the DTI-1
system, which had a range of between 60 and 180km, but it lacked
accuracy.

The new DTI-1G project will last three years and will be funded under a 1.5-billion-baht budget, ACM Sukumpol said.

Gen Liang also told the delegation that if Thailand wants to buy
weapons from China, it will be willing to sell them at "friendly
prices", ACM Sukumpol quoted Gen Liang as saying."The price of Chinese
weaponry has increased greatly recently. Arms are not as cheap as before
so we will have to consider this carefully," ACM Sukumpol said.

As well as technological cooperation, the Thai and Chinese defence
ministries have also agreed to hold a joint military exercise involving
their air forces for the first time.

"We will need to discuss more details of this because Thailand and
China have different military doctrines in the aviation area," ACM
Sukumpol said.

So far the two countries have held joint military drills involving the army's special warfare units and the navy's marine corps.

In another demonstration of closer military ties, 130 officers from
the Royal Thai Navy Corps will participate in a joint exercise to be
held in Guangdong in southern China between May 9 and 29.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Homeland Security Rocket.

According to the website "thaiarmedforce.com"
Thailand's Defense Technology Institute's Homeland Security Rocket
Project has been commissioned with the 711st artillery battalion, Royal
Thai Army.

This marks a second the 2nd export adoption of the WS-1 long-range
rocket system by the China National Precision Machinery Corporation
(CPMIEC). The 302mm WS-1 Multiple Rocket System has a range up to 180km
and able to carry a number warheads, including 475 SZB-1 sub-munitions
(500 bullets per submunition), ZDB-2B HE Fragmentation, YDB-1 Fuel Air
explosive and 24,000 incendiary pellets. WS-2, the next generation of
the WS family rockets, has a range of 350km, with no foreign adoption
thus far.

Turkey manufactures the WS-1 MRL under license as the T-300 Kasirga with the first delivery date of 1998.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

“A task force of Russian ships, comprising the Varyag missile cruiser, the Admiral Vinogradov, the Marshal Shaposhnikov and the Admiral Tributs large anti-submarine destroyers and the SB-522, MB-37 and Pechenga supply ships, left the port of Qingdao and anchored in the area of the Maritime Cooperation-2012 exercises in the Yellow Sea,” the Russian Navy said in a statement.

Russia and China have completed the first stage of naval exercises in
the Yellow Sea, off the coast of Qingdao in eastern China, the Russian
Navy said.
Though Russia and China conduct joint naval drills on a regular basis
since 2005, the Maritime Cooperation-2012 will be the first
Chinese-Russian military exercise outside the framework of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization.
“The first stage of the exercise - the deployment of ships - has been completed,” the ministry said.
The exercise, to last until Friday, involves more than 20 vessels
from Russia and China, including destroyers, escort vessels, hospital
ships, submarines and supply ships.
“A task force of Russian ships, comprising the Varyag missile cruiser, the Admiral Vinogradov, the Marshal Shaposhnikov
and the Admiral Tributs large anti-submarine destroyers and the SB-522,
MB-37 and Pechenga supply ships, left the port of Qingdao and anchored
in the area of the Maritime Cooperation-2012 exercises in the Yellow
Sea,” the Russian Navy said in a statement.
On Wednesday the participants will begin the active phase of the
exercise, comprising several simulated missions, such as the rescue of a
hijacked ship, commercial vessel escort, and defending a convoy from
air and sea attacks.
Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said on Tuesday the
exercise is not directed against “third states” and is not an attempt by
Moscow and Beijing to create a military alliance.

A total of 16 vessels and two submarines from Chinese navy would participate the drill, including five missile destroyers, five missile frigates, four missile boats, a support vessel and hospital ship. Together with them are 13 aircrafts and five shipboard helicopters.

Recent Internet rumors and photos are suggesting that the old Jianghu I and II are being withdrawn from combat patrols. Some are them are being sold to Bangladesh and Burma, others have their front pair of 37mm mounts replaced by Heavy MG more suitable for anti-piracy and fishery patrols in the South China Sea. Other noticeable patrol centric modifications include two SATCOM antennas, new cranes for the rubber dinghies and extra cameras on top of the bridge.

FFG534, FFG553 and FFG555, the three known South China Sea modified Jianghu Is,

FFG 544, the sole member of the JiangHu IV class -- withdrawn
from service in 2010 and has been enjoying her new life as a training ship for the Chinese Naval
Academy in Qingdao.

The younger JiangHu Vs are being converted into SSM trucks.

Sunday, February 06, 2011

JiangHu V Class FFG, Two-Point-O.

Recent pictures reveal that several upgrades have been completed on the
last batch of Type 053H1G FFG (also known as Jianghu V class) that
entered service in the 1990s with the South Sea Fleet. Those upgrades
are suggesting that all six Jianghu V class FFGs will remain in service
with the PLAN for the foreseeable future.

The latest improvements include new air-search and fire-control radars,
new twin 100mm main gun turrets to replace the old models, the addition
of 37mm CIWS mounts, and the replacement of Silkworms with YJ-83
anti-ship missiles.

The reasoning behind the latest upgrade of a rather obsolete class of
frigates has been the subject of speculation on CDF. Some suggest that
recent upgrades signify the immaturity of newer vessels' design, while
others argue that even though the 053 is obsolete, it remains a
cost-effective and potent platform against weaker potential rivals in
the South China Sea. This author is highly skeptical of the "technology
immaturity" speculation; the rapid pace of 054A construction should have
erased any doubt by now about the "maturity" of the PLAN's new
generation of FFGs. The latter speculation is a far more likely
possibility. The commitment of modern surface combatants to the Gulf of
Aden and the uptick in regional maritime disputes has increased the
necessity for a stop-gap measure for effective littoral patrol until the
new Type 056 corvettes enter service. *

Photo taken on April 16 shows the moment of an unmanned Chinese military drone taking off. The unmanned Chinese military drone recently completed its first digital mapping mission near north China's Helan mountain, capturing high-definition imaging data during more than five consecutive hours of aerial photography. (Xinhua Photo)

YINCHUAN, April 18 (Xinhua) -- An unmanned Chinese military drone recently completed its first digital mapping mission near north China's Helan mountain, capturing high-definition imaging data during more than five consecutive hours of aerial photography.

Conducted by the Lanzhou Military Area Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), the mission marked the first time for such type of unmanned drone to be used for military mapping purposes, military sources said Wednesday.

The success of the mission marks the Chinese military's creation of a drone-based emergency mapping support mechanism in north China, said Zhang Zhiyuan, the mission's field commander.

The unmanned Chinese military drone recently completed its first digital mapping mission near north China's Helan mountain, capturing high-definition imaging data during more than five consecutive hours of aerial photography. (Xinhua Photo)